Makwelani
Project Description
Makwelani Village is located in Group Village Head Malunga in Traditional Authority Kuntaja in Blantyre District, Malawi. At the Makwelani school, there are 585 total learners (85 nursery students and 500 primary students) who come from the school’s catchment area of 2 nearby villages. There are ~2,100 total people in the catchment area.
Learners under 6 years old go to a Community Development Center (CDC) for nursery classes, which is only a 5 minute walk away from the primary school. The primary school offers levels/grades 1-6 and does not offer levels 7-8. The primary school is also located 3 km away from a local medical center. The Makwelani village schools are lacking in English books and are looking for opportunities to learn outside of the classroom.
The primary school has a total of 5 latrines. This is a ratio of 100:1 students to latrines, which is double the standard of 50:1. The CDC has 1 latrine for a student to latrine ratio of 85:1. These latrines are easily susceptible to structural damage from rain and thus are seasonally unreliable.
Makwelani Village School’s main water source is 2 boreholes. There is also a third non-functional borehole at the school. However, during the dry season, it is difficult to pump water from the functional boreholes. There are also broken bridges at the school that make it challenging to cross the nearby river, especially during the wet season.
The school and surrounding community use solid fuel burning as their primary means of cooking. They cut down trees for firewood and the kids bring sticks from home.
In August 2024, the Tufts University Chapter conducted an Assessment Trip to Malawi to understand the needs of two new communities: the Makwelani Village, and the Naisi Primary School. With our partnership with Joshua Orphan and Community Care (JOCC) and Freshwater Project International (FPI), we went into the communities, conducted interviews, and met with CBOs and chiefs. We assessed contractors and supply stores, as well as met with other EWB chapters in the area to take a look first hand what a sanitation and water distribution project could look like.